I absolutely LOVE yoga for children! There are just so many benefits to getting your little one to move their body and stay active! Yoga is a fun, safe, noncompetitive way to encourage healthy habits and beyond that, it also encourages children to flex their "focus" muscles, helps them identify some techniques that will calm their body & cope with bigger emotions, and can enhance their strength, coordination, and flexibility! Here are 10 "Animal" Poses that my children love and do daily!
1. Monkey
Reach, reach, reach! Stretch those back muscles and lengthen your little spine, then go the other way! Great for little ones who have been sitting all day or just woke up from a nap!
2. Giraffe
Promotes better posture, and improves core body strength. Great for little ones in school who have been sitting all day!
3. Flamingo
Your little one should have their back aligned nice and tall (we were struggling with balance here, so she reached for the wall as we took the photo), do your best to keep your back and hips strong, it's great for practicing your balancing skills!
4. Dog
Otherwise known as the "downward dog" if you speak yogi, this pose lengthens and decompresses the spine, stretches the hamstrings, strengthens your arms, flushes your brain with fresh oxygen, and calms your mind!
5. Cat
Known for improving posture, both the cat and cow stretches are good for flexibility and help with back aches and pains.
6. Cow
Known for improving posture, both the cat and cow stretches are good for flexibility and help with back aches and pains.
7. Snake
After going back and forth between cat and cow a few times, Snake pose is known to strengthen the spine, stretches the chest, lungs, shoulders, and abdomen. Helps relieve stress, soothes the nervous system, and is also therapeutic for fatigue!
8. Butterfly
Once again, if you speak yogi, this pose can also be called the "Sukhasana", but in kids terms (or if you remember in gym class back in middle school) it's also the butterfly. It seems simple enough but this pose has many awesome benefits! It opens the hips, lowers anxiety levels, and helps little ones with their "focusing" skills! Make sure to sit up big and tall!
9. Frog
Stretches thighs, groin, hips, ankles, and torso. Tones your abdominal muscles and improves function of the colon to help with elimination. Increases circulation and blood flow in your hips.
10. Duck
Float on your belly like a duck in a pond! This fun pose improves digestion and appetite, cures constipation, improves blood circulation, and helps stretch chest and back muscles! Lift those little legs and arms up, up, up! How long can your little one hold this pose?
Yoga is so fun for both you AND your little one, and my kids do yoga DAILY! We follow along to Cosmic Kids Yoga on YouTube, put together our own little session like the one above (How can we move like an animal?), or simply dance it out with our favorite tunes! It is fun for them but also a great way for you to bond together through staying active! It improves their focus, concentration, coordination & balance, breathing, and helps stress management among other things!
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